Every hundredth Russian – the carrier of a rare genetic disease

About 1.5 million people in Russia have in its genome the information about the carriers of the gene of Wilson's disease. In the circumstances this disease can cause serious complications and death. About the ongoing research work to tell the experts from the Novosibirsk research Institute of molecular biology and Biophysics.

Wilson's disease-Konovalov opened a century ago, but it is not very much. "This disease is difficult to diagnose. It is easy to confuse with Parkinson's disease or cirrhosis of the liver", - says Andrey Kudryavtsev, PhD student-researcher of the research group.

Carriage is only one form of the disease, when no symptoms there. There are more dangerous forms: neurological and hepatic. It is noteworthy that the hepatic form is much more common in children. "This is one of the few genetic diseases that can be cured. For this there are methods and products. Most importantly - before capture", - says head of the laboratory of the research Institute Sergei Kovalenko.

The eradication of the disease requires the development of a mass system of DNA diagnostics. According to experts, it takes so much money to create this diagnostic method and its implementation in the healthcare system of Russia.

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